Tài liệu Developing writting skills 1 part 4 pdf

The consonant c is silent a in -sc- before e, i, y, initially: scene, scientist, scissors, scythe; medially: descend, discipline, fascinate; finally: acquiesce, reminisce; b in –scl- in

Lesson 4 Section 1 Spelling: Silent Consonants

A 1 The consonant b is silent (a) in –bt (before t): debt, doubt,

subtle; (b) in –mb (after m): limb, lamb, climb, dumb, crumb, thumb,

tomb, comb

N o t e: However, b is always pronounced in its medial position in

such words as timber, number, amber, etc

2 The consonant c is silent (a) in (-)sc(-) before e, i, y, initially: scene, scientist, scissors, scythe; medially: descend, discipline, fascinate; finally: acquiesce, reminisce; (b) in –scl- in a few words: muscle, corpuscle; (c) before t in a few words and also in some names of English counties: Connecticut, Gloucester, Leicester; (d) in acqu- (from Lat prefix ad- + qu-): acquaint, acquire, acquit; (e) in exce-, exci- (from Lat prefix ex- + qu-): excellent, except, excite; (f) in four loans from Russian: czar, czarevna, czarina, czarevitch

3 The letter-combination ch is silent in a few words: yacht, fuchsia

4 The letter g is silent (a) initially in gn-: gnat, gnaw, gnash, gnarl, gnome; (b) finally in –gm,- ign: paradigm, sovereign, resign, feign, design; (c) medially in the words: champagne, signor(a), chignon, cognac

N o t e: However, in some derivatives g is always audible in its

medial position: malignant, resignation, signal, etc

Exercise 1 Insert the appropriate word with silent b, c or g from the above

lists

1 The building was of a modern … but inside it was panelled with carved oak 2 The only way to deceive him is to … a heart attack and ask him to call for an ambulance 3 At the station they saw no one … porters and a villager or two unknown to them 4 His fingers are all … 5 Give me a … and … and I’ll make of you the most stylish woman in St Beam 6 He was certain of seeing unique and astonishing … 7 I owe him a … of gratitude for the numberless

favours he has done me 8 All the … and uncertainty made her feel miserable and unhappy 9 The boy was … from birth but didn’t suffer because of it, as he never realized what he lacked 10 John was … by the hypnotic atmosphere 11 Bread … were always scattered under the kitchen window and birds used to feast there 12 The dog … the bone, and it was more delicious than anything he had ever tasted 13 He got so … over the idea that he thought he should

go at once 14 Then, above that humid silence, there came a nagging song like the song of a … 15 The boys were sure the treasure was under the … old oak 16 He … his teeth in pain but no moan escaped his lips 17 We had to … ourselves to doing without the most necessary things 18 I am a very bad … I will do anything to make a human being feel better even if it is unscientific 19 The epitaph on the … stone was solemn and beautiful 20 … are imaginary dwarfs living under the ground and guarding treasures

B 1 The letter-combination gh is silent in (a) –igh(t): high, sigh,

thigh, bright; (b) –eigh(t): sleigh, weigh, neighbour, height, weight; (c) –aight: straight; (d) –aught: haughty, naughty, slaughter, taught; (e) –ough(t): dough, ploughman, thorough, though, thought, etc

2 The consonant h is silent initially in (a): hour, honest, heir; (b) exh-: exhaust, exhibit, exhort; (c) gh-: ghastly, ghost, ghetto; (d) kh-: khaki, khan, Sakhalin; (e) th-: thyme, Theresa, Thames, and medially in: Mathilda, Anthony, Esther; (f) rh-: rhinoceros, rheumatism, rhythm, rhetoric, Rhine, rheostat, and also finally: catarrh; (g) wh-: whale, wheat, whence, white, whimsical, whelm, whim, whiz, whisky, whirl, whisker, whisper; medially (a) between a stressed and an unstressed vowels: Graham, prohibition, vehicle, vehemence; (b) between a consonant and an unstressed vowel: silhouette, gingham, burgher, and also in: spaghetti, Fahrenheit; (c)

in –ham: Birmingham, Tottenham, Buckingham, Durham, and finally after a vowel: ah, bah, eh, oh, hurrrah, etc

N o t e: wh stands for /h/ in: who, whole, whooping-cough, whore

Exercise 2 Fill in the blanks with the words from the above lists

1 He was not so large, - he only one hundred and forty pounds 2 The man next to me was a …man who had never been to

London and was most anxious to see St Paul’s 3 This American car was indeed the finest … that had ever appeared in the village 4 When the storm was at its … the ship cracked in the raging waves 5 Whenever they came he would speak with great … about the misery caused by idle and lazy habits 6 Only a … analysis of the results disclosed the secret of the phenomenon 7 He was a heavy-… champion and gave spectacular performances of physical strength 8

He looked upon the war as a … calamity, or a more … crime 9 The door of his … , who lives downstairs is shut like an angry face 10 His legs in … boots supported his bulky body like columns 11 I never thought that … could be any good – persuasion was my weapon 12 A … of relief escaped her lips when she saw that her letter hadn’t been posted 13 His … answer left no room for doubt

14 The …-boat we met on our way back helped us with water

C 1 The consonant k is silent in kn- (in its initial position): knead,

knit, knee, kneel, knife, knight, knock, knob, knot, knuckle

N o t e: However k becomes ck before n in medial position:

acknowledgement

2 The consonant p is silent (1) initially in pn-: pneumonia, pneumatic; ps-: in the words containing pseudo-, psych(o)-, psalm-; pt-: pseudonym, Ptolemy, psychology; (2) medially in –spb-: raspberry; (3) also in a few words: receipt, corps, sapphire, cupboard, coup

Exercise 3 Fill in the blanks with the words from the above lists

1 The two families are … together by common interests 2 He

… to pick up his hat 3 She wandered into the fruit-garden, among the … and currant bushes, without any wish to pick and eat 4 The ship had been badly … about by the storm 5 What difference did it make whether she had died of … or not 6 Below the wardrobe was

a gas stove, and beside the bed was a wooden food … with a small portable radio on it 7 She took the … from the drawer and quickly cut the loaf 8 He thought that by signing this work with a … he could mislead the reading public 9 Our cook said that she hated … dough 10 The old woman had an unpleasant habit of scratching her

head with a … needle 11 All parents need some knowledge of …

12 People were standing about in … waiting for news

Exercise 4 Copy the following sentences supplying the missing silent

letters Translate the sentences

1 On that day, August 6 1945, the first atomic bom_ was dropped on Hiroshima 2 It was ex_austing work, carried on, hour after hour, at top speed 3 I had to help him into the boat, for he had brought back his gun and a _napsack heavy with provisions 4 Dum_ terror made him drop the hammer and rush out 5 The end came one morning after a month of illness, during which silence rei_ned in the house and all the family went about on tiptoe 6 In post-war England forei_ners who showed their passports could have goods sent home at a much lower price 7 Aunt Laura wasn’t what you’d call comfortably off, but she was an _eiress 8 With the invention of _neumatic tools many problems of technology were solved 9 No s_ientist worthy of the name could say such a thing

10 A stout man in a red sweater came out and si_ned the book for the driver 11 The word ‘lady’ originally meant ‘bread-_neader’ and

‘lord’ – ‘bread-guarder’ 12 When people get very dull and are almost ready to kill themselves for dullness, their doctors advise them to have a change of s_enery, and a change of company 13 Aubrey said that if I posed before the Titian it would be wonderful publicity for the ex_ibition 14 Then he went to his camp and filled his hat with cake-crum_s to feed the little birds 15 I am very much inde_ted to him and this inde_tedness is a burden to me 16 All his friends knew he was in the habit of going to a _sychiatrist now and then 17 He would have been unfei_nedly sorry to see his respected friend duped and deceived

D 1 The consonant l is silent in: (a) –alf / alv-: calf, half,

calves, halfpenny; (b) –alm: alms, almond, balm, calm, palm, salmon; (c) –a(u)lk-: chalk, stalk walk, Fa(u)lk; (d) –olk: folk, yolk, Norfolk; (e) –oln / -olon: Lincoln, colonel; (f) –olm-: Holmes, Stockholm; (g) could, should, would, and in inflected and derived

forms from them

2 The consonant n is silent in –mn finally and in inflected forms: autumn, column, solemn, condemn, hymn

N o t e: However, n is always pronounced in their derivatives:

autumnal, solemnity, etc But: solemnly has a silent n

3 The consonants s and z are silent in some words of French origin and in recent French loans: aisle, chamois, chassis, Illinois, Arkansas, corps, isle, island, pince-nez, rendezvous, and in inflected

and derived forms from them

Exercise 5 Fill in the blanks with the words from the above lists

1 Smith meant to be … , but as they went along Queen Street the perspiration began to break out on the back of his neck and the …

of his hands 2 When they rode out in the morning they passed cattle, rusty young bullocks with great horns, and a few cows and … 3 The hall was decorated with precious stones, the roof was supported by … of gold 4 She was guilty of a misdeed, which he felt unable to … 5 … in Moscow is mostly cold and rainy, because

of the constant northerly winds 6 A group of … dancers came to the town and performed in the town hall 7 The piece of … cake fell from my hands as I sat stupefied 8 They swore a … oath never to part, and to share all their joys and troubles 9 The villa was surrounded with …-trees and the view from the window was marvellous

E The consonant t is silent (a) medially in –stl- and –st(h)m-: bristle,

castle, nestle, jostle, rustle, thistle, bustle, whistle, wrestle, Christmas, asthma, and also postpone; (b) finally in –ften, -sten and

in some words of French origin: fasten, christen, hasten, moisten, ballet, buffet, argot, debut, bouquet, and in inflected and derived

forms from them

N o t e: However, t is pronounced in haste, pistol, Christ, soft,

hostel, crystal, etc

Exercise 6 Copy the sentences, opening the brackets, and translate them

1 The child (ï»Õ³íáñí»É) close to Alice 2 The (³Ùñáó) had been built in the year 1405 and there was still much of the original structure standing 3 I heard a (ËßËßáó) in the grass behind me and, turning sharply, saw Dina Bond picking her way toward me 4 I stared into the darkness, the hairs on the nape of my neck (µÇ½-µÇ½

ϳݷݻÉ) 5 Then she again heard the sounds of (Çñ³ñ³ÝóáõÙ) 6 You took five iron hoops, and fixed them up over the boat, and then stretched the canvas over them, and (³Ùñ³óÝ»É) it down: it would take quite ten minutes, we thought 7 They (Çñ³ñ Ññ»É) one another out in turns 8 The flake floated on the air, carrying the seed of the (áõÕï³÷áõß) 9 I awoke to the sounds of (³×³å³ñ³Ýù), for the servants were all up and down to prepare pies, game and poultry 10 The project had to be (Ñ»ï³Ó·»É) 11 Miss Deila (ßï³å»É) immediately to her sister’s room; and I withdrew to my studio to busy myself with drawings

F The consonant w is silent (a) initially in wr- and wh-: wrestle,

wrinkle, wriggle, wrist, playwright, wrap, wrath, wreath, wrench, wreck, wren, wretched, overwrought, wry, wrong, wring; (b) medially between a consonant and a vowel: two, sword, answer, Greenwich, Norwich; (c) initially and medially in (-)aw(-): awe, awful, awkward, crawl; (d) initially, medially and finally in (-)ow(-): owe, own, crowd, powder, brow, blow, meadow; (e) initially, medially and finally in –ew(-): news, shrewd, new, few, grew, nephew, screw, and in inflected and derived forms from them

Exercise 7 Fill in the blanks with the words from the above lists

1 Soon began the service, which the … outcasts had to endure

as the price of their lodging 2 There he lay for the remainder of the weary night, nursing his … and his wounded pride 3 “You might …

up the goods before you deliver them,” the stranger said gruffly 4

Mr Everad’s forehead … with the effort and he turned a worried face towards Miss Carter 5 Tim came to Morley, took him by the … and, turning him about, began to lead him quickly back the way he had come 6 Henry turned to me with a … smile 7 The girl threw herself into a chair and … her hands, but made no reply 8 I understand her generous anxiety, poor girl, after she had innocently

… him 9 I was as … and shy with her as if I had been a lad in my teens 10 This didn’t seem to promise to the … material for an interesting play in the last act 11 The President has asked me to be his personal representative at the ceremony tomorrow, to cast a … on the sea 12 “We are both too … ,” he said “We will speak of this

again tomorrow.” 13 Paola gave a contemptuous … of her shoulders 14 The only person he knows here is Peggy with her little boy … beside her

Section 2 Sentence Structure

Parallel structures Parallelism, or expressing similar ideas in

similar grammatical terms, makes for brevity, coherence and balance

of style Here are a few examples of parallel structures

e.g The girl was small, plump and fair (homogeneous

predicatives expressed by adjectives)

Finding a flat and beginning her job were the next steps in her life (homogeneous subjects expressed by gerundial phrases)

This pattern seems fairly obvious and easy to follow, but it is not always quite so simple in practice There are two types of faulty parallelism which usually betray a lapse in logic:

a The doctor recommended plenty of food, sleep and

exercising (Here elements similar in idea are not made similar in

form; there are two nouns and a gerund The correct version is: …

food, sleep and exercise.)

b She has travelled by land, sea and aeroplane (The elements

are similar in form (nouns) but on different generalization levels; the

correct version is: by land, sea and air, or by train, boat and aeroplane.)

Parallel forms may be used with the correlative conjunctions

both … and, either … or, neither … nor, not only … but also

Sometimes it is possible to avoid repeating an element common to both parts of the parallel structure (e.g a preposition,

pronoun, article or phrase), e.g And because of the memories it

holds and the comfort it provides my room is a constant source of

pleasure (because of not repeated) The team was praised for its

courage and endurance (for its not repeated)

A general rule to follow is to repeat the initial word or phrase

in a parallel structure whenever it is necessary to make the meaning

clear In a succession of that-clauses, for example, the meaning is

usually clearer if the introductory that is repeated in every clause,

e.g The boy denied that he had entered the house and had taken the money (ambiguous) - The boy denied that he had entered the house and that he had taken the money.(clear)

In a comparison phrase it clarifies the meaning if you repeat

the preposition: e.g The weather was a greater handicap to the invading army than the enemy (ambiguous) – The weather was a greater handicap to the invading army than to the enemy (clear)

Exercise 1 Rewrite the following sentences, correcting the faulty

parallelism

1 The ambassador spoke with warmth and in a humorous way

2 Earlier in his life the famous writer had been a waiter, a tour guide, a mechanic and taught at school 3 His lectures are witty, interesting and he plans them well 4 Thomas Hardy achieved success both as a church architect and by writing poetry 5 To swim

in the lake is more pleasant than swimming in the sea 6 The tutor recommended several books for supplementary reading and that we should go and see a play dealing with our subject 7 Nuclear physics has led to research in improving communications, and in how to make people healthier 8 Come to the meeting prepared to take notes and with some questions to ask 9 The moral of the fable is that industrious men are always rewarded and light-mindedness is always punished

Exercise 2 The following sentences sound ambiguous Clarify their

meaning, introducing the necessary conjunctions or repeating prepositions

1 I forgot that my research paper was due on Tuesday and my

teacher had said he would not accept late papers 2 The insurance man knew that we had paid our bill and we had our receipt 3 He said that this party had never had many adherents and there were fewer party members today than ever before 4 It is a time not for words but action 5 My summer work proved not only interesting but I also learned much from it 6 It was both a long ceremony and very tedious 7 I wondered whether I should continue with it or should I give it up

Appositives The appositive may be used to express details in a

compact way Consider the following passage:

I was born in Middleville It’s a real small town Most of the people in it are farmers They raise cows for milk and a lot of apples Still, it’s the county seat of Whiteside County

The fault here, besides wordiness, wrong parallelism and the use of contracted forms, is monotony of syntactical construction Using appositives you may rewrite it in a more efficient style:

I was born in Middleville, a small dairy and apple-growing community and the seat of Whiteside County

The following example shows you how to combine two sentences into one with the help of appositives, and thus achieve a more mature style

The custom of kissing under the mistletoe was once an old Druid religious ceremony It is now a pleasant part of Christmas –

The custom of kissing under the mistletoe, once an old Druid religious ceremony, is now a pleasant part of Christmas

Note that appositives of this type are set off by commas

Exercise 3 Combine the following sentences using the appositive

1 Lutetium was discovered in 1905 It is one of the rare earth elements 2 The room looked drab and familiar It bore no resemblance to the mysterious chamber he had seen two years ago 3

My father is a congenial person and he has not made an enemy in his life 4 The word radio has now replaced wireless in everyday speech Until the 1960s it was a technical term 5 Discotheque became a part of the English vocabulary towards 1965 This is a French word meaning “a record library” 6 From the Slavonic family

of languages comes robot It is a Czech word in origin 7 Doris Lane was due to arrive at noon for some colossal shopping at his boutique She was a film actress 8 Linda was overjoyed She began to cry

Absolute participial construction As the absolute participial

construction does not exist in Armenian, students are unaccustomed

to using them Yet quite often an absolute phrase is the best way of expressing an idea – graceful, with a minimum number of words,

breaking the monotony of too many subordinate clauses, introducing

a new rhythm

Compare the following sentences:

a After his patience had been exhausted, the teacher ordered the pupil to leave the classroom

b His patience exhausted, the teacher ordered the pupil to

leave the classroom

The adverbial clause of the first sentence is expressed by an absolute construction in the second We see that the absolute construction expresses the same idea with greater economy and force

There are two types of absolute constructions: 1) the nominative and 2) the prepositional absolute constructions Either of them may or may not contain a participle:

e.g 1) The concert (being) over, we went away

2) He walked slowly, with his hands (thrust) deep in his pockets

Absolute participial constructions are generally separated by a

comma, except those introduced by with, which occur fairly often

without a comma

However useful the absolute construction may be, it should be used in moderation Remember, too, that these constructions (except

those introduced by with) are characteristic of formal style

Exercise 4 Reconstruct the following sentences so that each contains an

absolute construction

1 Since the case was ended, the jury adjourned 2 The banquet began at midnight, when a large orchestra played a fanfare

3 When all things were considered, the couple decided to postpone their wedding date 4 His scholarship was certain, so he made plans

to leave for Belgium 5 She sat in the chair, her face was turned towards the light 6 Their camping equipment was packed and they were ready to depart 7 The father’s patience was exhausted, and he ordered his child into the yard 8 She opened her bag, her hands were shaking 9 There was no note on the table, the back numbers of foreign magazines were scattered on the floor